EV Connect What is EVSE White Paper

7/28/2019 EV Connect What is EVSE White Paper

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2013 EV Connect, all rights reserved.

What is EVSE and Why it Matters to You

An electric vehicle charge station primer forcorporate, government, hotel, shopping and multi-

family/commercial property managers.

By Jordan Ramer, CEO, EV Connect

breathe easy


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2013 EV Connect, all rights reserved.

Table of Contents

Executive Summary ..................................................................................................................................... 1Why Should I Bother Starting an EVSE Program? ...................................................................................... 1

What is Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment? ............................................................................................... 3

What are EV charging levels? .................................................................................................................. 3

What Makes up an EVSE System? ............................................................................................................. 3

Physical components ............................................................................................................................... 4

Software applications ............................................................................................................................... 4

On-going operation and maintenance...................................................................................................... 5

How Much Does an EVSE Program Cost? .................................................................................................. 6

Viable revenue sources and cost offsets ................................................................................................. 7

What are My Next Steps? ............................................................................................................................ 7

EV Connect, Inc, is the EVSE-Industry Leader ........................................................................................... 8

EVSE Glossary of Terms and Definitions .................................................................................................... 9


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1 | P a g e 2013 EV Connect, all rights reserved.

Executive Summary

This white paper is a primer for readers who want to understand the basics of electric vehicle chargestations, otherwise known as Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE). It is written to give you afundamental understanding of this topic. And to help you determine if an EVSE program would bebeneficial to you, your company or property.

This paper begins with why you would consider starting an EVSE program. Next, youll learn about thenuts and bolts of EVSE: the hardware, software and maintenance components. And while these topicsare essential to an ESVE primer, no discussion would be complete without touching upon program costs,so we explain those as well. Finally, we suggest viable next steps to help you answer the question, Is anEVSE program right for my organization, and if so, how do I economically implement one?

Why Should I Bother Starting an EVSE Program?

The short answer to that question is: Because Electric Vehicles (EVs) are important to your constituents.And by satisfying their needs, you derive a number of direct and indirect benefits for your company,municipality, hotel or property as Table 1 below illustrates.

You are Your constituents are

ENTERPRISE Employees, customers, investors, the media

Cost-effectively attract and keep great employees

(A private-sector company)

Reduce costly churn

Enhance & promote a positive brand image

Potential revenue stream or electricity costrecovery

GOVERNMENT Employees, voters, c itizens, the media

Meets federal and/or state mandates

(City, county, state, mass transit)

Supports sustainability objectives

Potential revenue stream


SERVICE PROVIDER Guests, customers and the media

Boost guest satisfaction

(Hotel, private parking garage,

Increase occupancy rate or visitations

Differentiate from competitors

Potential revenue stream: Increase Revenue PerAvailable Room (RevPAR)


RENTAL PROPERTY Tenants and the media

Boost tenant happiness

(Multi-family or commercial)

Reduce churn

Increase occupancy rates

Potential revenue stream


Your benefits are

Table 1: ESVE program constituents and benefits.

Many EV drivers are passionate about the environment. They choose products and a lifestyle thatsupports that belief. And while they take pride in driving an EV, ownership comes with its own challenges.

The biggest issue for them is whats referred to as range anxiety" or "charge anxiety." Thats becausecharging stations outside their homes are not nearly as available as gas stations. So when EV drivers areout and about they occasionally need to top off or fully charge their batteries to give them the peace ofmind that theyll reach their next destination. EV-driver anxiety is particularly acute when they are low onbattery charge and unsure of where they can get a charge. This phenomenon is so pervasive that asurvey conducted by the California Center for Sustainable Energy showed that 83 percent of respondents


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expressed dissatisfaction with public charging infrastructure.1

That correlates with the limited availabilityof charging stations in various locations as Figure 1 below shows.

Figure 1: The availability of charging stations is relatively limited.2

The lack of charging stations motivates EV drivers to carefully plan their destinations and routes to ensurethat dead batteries dont strand them. Consequently, anything you can do to help ease their anxiety, willearn you their good will and loyalty.

Given the shortage of charging stations shown in Figure 1, it stands to reason that an EVSE programhelps companies attract and retain quality employees. So toomay hotels, shopping and entertainment venues, public andprivate lots leverage an EVSE program to attract and retaincustomers.

The deployment of EVSE systems has taken root. They arepresent in many municipal, corporate, hotel and public/private lotsettings to name a few. In fact, many Fortune 500 companieshave implemented EVSE programs of their own, includingGoogle, Warner Brothers and eBay.

3Most offer EVSE programs

as a perk to EV-driving employees.

Battery charging solutions may also help you reduce employeeand tenant churn, in addition to attracting more EV-drivingcustomers. That translates into hard-cost savings associatedwith recruiting, hiring and training new employees.

There is also evidence that an EVSE program may be a viablesource of revenue for certain hosts (EVSE program owner.) Survey results confirm this by quantifying theaverage $/hour respondents said theyd be willing to pay to charge their vehicles.

4And for multi-family,

commercial and hotel properties, higher occupancy rates add to top-line revenues.

1California Plug-in Electric Vehicle Owner Survey,Center for Sustainable Energy, California. 2012, p. 5. Last accessed 03-07-13.

2Ibid p. 6.

3http://www.pevcollaborative.org/sites/all/themes/pev/files/Comm_guide7_122308.pdf, last accessed 03-06-13.

4California Plug-in Electric Vehicle Owner Survey,ibid, p. 8.

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

Workplace

only

Publiconly Both

workplace&

public

Neither

workplace

norpublic

12%

39%

20%

29%

Plug-inEVowner'saccessto

workplace&publiccharging

Other names for EVSE:

Electric vehicle chargingstations

EV charging station Electric recharging point Charging point Car battery

charger/charging Electric vehicle charger Charger for electric car EV charger Electric car charger

station


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These benefitscutting expenses, adding an additional revenue stream and bolstering your brandallcombine to make further exploration of an EVSE program worth your while.

What is Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment?

EVSE is the point-of-fueling infrastructure that delivers a safe charge to plug-in electric vehicle batterychargers. It prevents injury to operators and protects the EV components from damage. The core elementof EVSE systems is the charging station.

EV charging stations have a number of features that differentiate them. A dumb charging station, forexample, lacks the components and software to do anything intelligent beyond charging. It is a stand-alone, non-networked unit.

A smart charger by contrast, incorporates the software and communications devices necessary tonetwork it with a hosts EVSE system. This capability enables the two-way flow of information. Thus,charge station managers may monitor the status of individual units, respond to malfunction and collectusage data.

Moreover, software and card readers allow managers to provision chargers to grant access to, and/orcontrol pricing for, authorized users (via network user cardstypically free, credit cards or branded EV

charging payment cards).

What are EV charging levels?

Another important charge station feature is its charging level. These are categorized as Level 1, Level 2and Level 3. They range from low-level electric power (takes a long time to charge,) to high-level electriccharging delivery (fast charging).Table 2 below details the features of each level.

Charge Level Power Level Charge Time Description

AC Level 1

Basic, "slow," "trickle"

charging

110-120V AC (alternating

current)Full charge: 10-20 hrs

The power level is equivalent to plugging into a

household electrical outlet. It is best suited for

smaller battery sizes such as those in PHEVs or

when longer charging time is available.

AC Level 2

Fast, or "quick" charging 208-240V AC Full charge: 4-8 hrs

The power level is equivalent to plugging into a

household electric clothes dryer socket. This is the

most common public charging level.

DC Level 3

Very fast chargingConverts 3-phase AC to

DC

Full charge: 20-30

minutes

Best-suited for fast turnaround locations and fleet

vehicle charging. DC Level 3 requires significant panel

and service upgrades and consequently is the most

expensive to deploy. Table 2: EV charging level descriptions.

Deployment costs and charge times have made Level 2 chargers the most pragmatic choice for hoststoday. Thats because each charging station may serve from 2-4 drivers daily depending upon usagepolicies and/or EV charge times. Level 3 (L3) charging stations, while optimal for most EV drivers, areoften costly to install at some locations. Moreover, the only car currently available that can use L3

charging is the Nissan LEAF with its optional fast charge receptacle.

What Makes up an EVSE System?

An EVSE solution is made up of:

Physical components, such as internal electronics, controllers, cord, EV-compatible plug andtelecommunications devices to share data and enable network connections.


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Software applications to manage the charging, billing, driver access, and administration of anEVSE program.

On-going service to maintain physical and software components as well as provide customerservice to both EVSE owners and their driver constituents.

Well discuss each in turn.

Physical components

Charge stations incorporate a number of assemblies and controllers.

The power electronics assembly is the guts of a charge station. Functionally, it supplies the powerto the EVs onboard battery charger. Physically, its made up of wires, capacitors, transformersand other electronic parts.

The charge controller serves as the street smarts of the charge station. It oversees basic chargefunctions, like the turning a charger on/off, the metering of power usage and the storing of keybits of real-time and event data.

The network controller provides the brains of the charge station. It enables the station tocommunicate with its network (via an on-board telecommunications device) so that managers canmonitor it and review historical event data. It also controls user access to a charging station

through a series of white (authorized) or black (unauthorized) lists. The charge station cable and connector plug into the target electric vehicle. These components

provide the conduit for a charge to bedelivered.

Figure 2 highlights the major parts of anEVSE system.

1. A charging location utility receptacle(110V wall socket) configured to supplyLevel 1 electrical power. The on-sitereceptacle/electric panel is the demarcationpoint between the power grid and the

beginning of the EV charging stationsystem.

2. Levels 2 & 3 EV charging stations arehardwired to an electric panel.

3. EV charging station. May be free-standing or mounted to a wall or ceiling. "Smart" charging stationsinclude communications hardware for use with software applications.

4. EV charging station cord from charging station to vehicle plug.

5. EV charging station plug that delivers electricity to the vehicle.

Software applicationsEVSE software is designed to manage and administer charge stations and their networks and should notbe confused with EV applications created to oversee the electric vehicle. The software functionalelements are illustrated in Figure 3 below.

EVSE network software promotes the quick deployment and configuration of EV charge stations andfacilitates a two-way flow of data between the charge station and its cloud-based network control center.This functionality allows operators to remotely configure, manage, and update charge station software;set and control driver access to charging; set pricing; manage billing; and run usage reports. Software

Figure 2: Anatomy of an EVSE system.


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applications also enable drivers to easily locate and reserve available charge stations. Software tools canalso be configured to send notifications to operators (hardware/software issues) and EV drivers (chargecompleted, and charge station available.)

Figure 3: EVSE charge station management software functions.

On-going operation and maintenance

Once EVSE systems have been deployed, the host (owners) may maintain and administer them with anin-house employee. However, a better choice for many is to outsource their EVSE program management

and maintenance to a third-party EV service company like EV Connect. Such services typically cost far

less than an employee (e.g. wages, taxes, benefits.) And various services may be contracted on an lacarte basis including setting up EV driver access controls; pricing consultation if applicable; customersupport to site hosts and drivers; up-time monitoring; reporting; hardware and software maintenance; andmore.

Seventy-four percent of Plug-in Electric Vehicle (PEV) owners express strong interest inworkplace charging, and many businesses already see the value in installing charging.

Source: Workplace Charging: Why and How, pevcollaborative.org


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How Much Does an EVSE Program Cost?

EVSE program costs may be broken down into initial deployment costs (hardware plus installation), andongoing costs (management and maintenance) as shown in Figure 4 below. These costs can be offset bya number of things, such as employee and customer loyalty, EV-driver fees, and/or tax incentives.

Figure 4: EVSE program cost elements.

Hardware

Charge stations range in price from as low as $1,500 for a stand-alone (not networked with other stations)and go up to $5,000 for a smart, networked charge station. Hosts purchasing multiple units qualify forvolume pricing.

InstallationInstallation fees may include labor conducted by certified electricians, necessary conduit, wire, panelupgrades, electric service upgrades, and breakers plus taxes and fees associated with any requiredpermits. These costs can vary widely depending upon the level of charging to be offered (Level 1-leastexpensive to Level 3-most expensive.) Moreover, on-site factors can drive up costs. These may includethe distance a charge station is situated from a suitable electric panel and accessibility to cellularconnections.

Management and MaintenanceOnce charge stations have been deployed, they incur ongoing operational costs. In addition to electricitycosts, these may be divided into management and maintenance functions. Management activities includeday-to-day customer service actions such as managing driver access, billing, providing driver support anduptime monitoring. Marketing also falls into this category as the promotion of your EVSE program to yourconstituents (EV drivers, employees, the media etc.) is an essential part of your success.

A maintenance regimen is likewise essential to ensure the safe and uninterrupted performance of EVSEsystems. This includes such activities as preventative hardware/software maintenance as well as repairsand upgrades as needed. A good third-party EVSE vendor can provide these core services through amulti-year contract for just a few hundred dollars per charging station, per year.


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Viable revenue sources and cost offsets

Both public and private EVSE programs may take advantage of new revenue streams. Parking lots,public transportation lots, shopping and entertainment parking facilities may all collect charge station fees.Such income may be divided into EV charger use plus electricity consumption fees. The amount of

income from these sources varies according to factors such as location, level of charge offered, localdemand, and the decision by a host to offer EV charging as a free or low-cost (subsidized) amenity.

Beyond income from usage fees, the US federal government has authorized legislation to promote theuse of alternative fuels. One such incentive is the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit. Itsprovisions allow for a tax credit of 30 percent (up to $30,000 per business location) of the cost ofhardware and installation for alternative fueling equipment, including EVSEs.

5

To help inform your decision about an EVSE program, a sample ROI worksheet is shown below in Table3. You can estimate your company's own ROI by customizing the data.

Benefits $ Sample Costs Initial $ Annual $Attract educated and stable employees Significant $ Charge stations

Retain key employees Significant $ Installation

Happy, healthy, and productive employees Significant $ *Third-party managed services $533.00

Market industry leadership and perception

Intangible but

positive **Electricity per station (if not covered by EV drivers) $823.68

Ability to cover or make money from electricity

costs Moderate $ ***Staff resources $0.00

Total High Total

*Contact EV Connect f or a quote. $533/year based on 3-year contract f or standard services.

** Average electricity costs per charge station can be estimated at 260 days per year for 8 hours each day at 3.3 kWh (average $0.12 per kWh).

EV Charging ROI at Your Company

*** With EV Connect's Managed Services, your staff does not have to operate or maintain your charge stations, nor do they have to provide support to drivers.

Table 3: EVSE program ROI estimator.

What are My Next Steps?

There are many variables that factor into a decision to implement an EVSE program. And while electricityhas been around for over a century, the deployment of EV charging stations can be complex.

For that reason, we suggest that you enlist the help of firms with EV-industry expertise andexperience. That includes companies with a proven track-record of working with EV-certified installers,regulatory agencies and various EV charging station vendors. Such companies can assist you with everystep of the EVSE program implementation process. That includes equipment acquisition and installation;the leveraging of incentives and tax credits; and the creation of a written EVSE program plan.

Ideally, your chosen vendor would be EVSE-hardware agnostic. That means that they are not

contractually obligated to sell any specific brands of equipment. Consequently, they are free to pick andchoose the charge stations that are right for you.

At a minimum, these firms should offer a free site assessment and quote. This document can includeinformation about your site(s), some information about products being offered, and pricing for what it willcost to implement, operate, and maintain your EVSE program. With this valuable information in hand,youll be able to make an informed decision about implementing an EVSE program.

5Source: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/30C.


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EV Connect, Inc, is the EVSE-Industry Leader

Businesses and governmental organizations turn to us for a simple and cost-effective way to provide aturn-key EV charging program for their employees and constituents. We are an EVSE one-stop-shop,offering program design, hardware selection, charge station deployment, network management, driversupport, maintenance, and moreall tailored to you and your drivers' needs. Collectively, EV Connectsteam has over thirty-five years of EV charging experience and has deployed and managed thousands ofcharge stations.

With that amount of knowledge and leadership in the electric vehicle market, we have unmatchedexperience in the design, installation and management of EVSE programs. Our project managers sweatevery detailfrom helping you to select the right charge stations to permitting, inspections and workingwith your utility if necessary. All that translates into a hassle-free and cost-effective installation andoperating experience for you.

Contact our EVSE specialists today to see if an EVSE program is right for you.We offer free siteassessments and quotes, so theres no obligation. You'll get the information you need to makethe best decision for you, your organization or property.

Phone: 888-780-0062

Email us at: [email protected]

Website: www.evconnect.com


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EVSE Glossary of Terms and Definitions

Acronym/Term DefinitionAlternative FuelVehicle (AFV)

Alternative fuel vehicles may run on compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefiednatural gas (LNG), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), propane, methanol, ethanol, orelectricity. Vehicles running on other fuels that meet or exceed federal clean air

standards may also be classified as AFVs. Electric vehicles are also sometimesreferred to by this abbreviation.

Battery ElectricVehicle (BEV) orElectric Vehicle(EV)

An EV operates only on battery-stored power as there is no internal combustionengine drive nor hybrid mode possible. Thus EVs are entirely dependent oncharging stations. The acronyms BEV and EV are interchangeable.

Charging Station EVSE devices designed to charge electric vehicles at Level 1, 2 or 3. They may ormay not include data communications capabilities. They may be located at aresidence for private in-home use, at businesses for the exclusive use byemployees of the business or located at commercial areas such as multi-family/commercial properties, malls, restaurants, hotels, mass-transit lots orbusinesses where they are available for use by the general public.

Connectors A plug interface affixed to a chord to allow EVs to connect to wall plugs, Level 1,

and for Level 2 and 3 charging stations to connect to EVs. Major automanufacturers use SAE standard J1772-compliant connectors. The connector usesmulti-pin conductive technology that allows a number of features that include pilotsignal communication with the vehicle. The contacts have been designed to be safeand reliable with a claim of a 10,000 cycle lifeabout 13 years of twice daily use.

EREV Extended Range Electric Vehicle. Uses both a gas engine and an electric motor.However, rather than using the engine to drive the car, its used to run a generatorthat charges the batteries.

EVSE Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment-the physical charger, cable, connector andmanagement software necessary to safely deliver electricity to charge the batteriesof an electric vehicle.

FCEV Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle. Uses a fuel cell (typically hydrogen based) to generateelectricity that runs an on-board electric motor.

HEV Hybrid Electric Vehicle. Uses both a gasoline engine and an electric motor forpropulsion. The vehicles batteries are charged via a generator.Host, EVSE host An EVSE program owner. The owner may outsource some program elements such

as installation, maintenance and customer service.InternalCombustionEngine (ICE)

The conventional internal combustion engine is powered by gasoline but other fossilor bio-fuels may be used also.

Level 1 Charging(slow)

On-site circuit/outlet delivers 110-120V of alternating current. Typically, EV ownersuse a cord set to connect to a 120V wall outlet at 15, 20 or 30 amps. The output tothe vehicle is AC current. Cord sets provide EV owners a simple, low-cost way ofcharging while at home or away on a trip where a Level 2 unit is not available. Thelow power flow leads to long recharge times. For example, to deliver an 80 percentcharge to a 24 kWh battery would require about 14 hours. Due to this impractical

recharge time, a large majority of electric vehicle owners will install and use thehigher power Level 2 unit.Level 2 Charging(fast)

On-site circuit/outlet delivers 208-240V of alternating current at 20, 30 or 40 amps.The output to the vehicle is AC current. Free-standing, wall or ceiling chargingstations are intended for home use as well as public accessible infrastructure. Thepower levels range from 3.3kW to 7.6kW. This higher power output yields moderaterecharge times. For example, to deliver an 80 percent charge to a 24 kWh batterywould require about 4 hours assuming a 40 amp EVSE operating with an onboard6.6kW charger.


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Level 3 Charging(very fast)

Conceptually, the electric version of a gas pump intended for public accessiblelocations. Allows an appropriately compatible vehicle to receive a full charge in 20-30 minutes. Unlike Level 1 and Level 2 systems, Level 3 charging stations areoffboard. That means that the direct current (DC) output to the vehicle bypassesthe EVs Level 2 onboard charger to flow energy directly to the vehicles batterypack.

NeighborhoodElectric Vehicle(NEV)

The U.S. Department of Transportation classifies NEVs as speed-limited (or low-speed) and street-legal battery electric vehicles. These vehicles must have a grossweight of less than 3,000 lbs and a top speed of 25 miles per hour. Due to their lowspeeds, they are not subject to crash-test requirements. These vehicles are similarto golf carts that have been modified to be street legal.

SAE J1772 SAE J1772 is a North American standard for electrical connectors for electricvehicles. Its formal title is "SAE Surface Vehicle Recommended Practice J1772,SAE Electric Vehicle Conductive Charge Coupler.

6The SAE standard covers the

general physical, electrical, communication protocol, and performance requirementsfor the electric vehicle conductive charge system and coupler. The intent is to definea common electric vehicle conductive charging system architecture includingoperational requirements and the functional and dimensional requirements for thevehicle inlet and mating connector.

Utility Rate-Standard orDomestic Rate

Standard/domestic rates are the utility companies standard tariff. An EV ownerusing this rate may incur significantly higher power bills because the standard meterassociated with this rate will merely count all KwH consumed during the monthlybilling period.

Utility Rate-Timeof Use (TOU), alsoEV TOU rate

Utility rates vary according to high- and low-peak use hours. Thus the rate chargedto an EV customer is based not only on the total electricity used, but also upon thetime of day the energy was drawn.

Utility Rate-WholeHouse time of use(TOU) rate

Whole house time-of-use utility bills use tiered pricing for power use according tothe time of day and season it was consumed. The lowest rates are typically in thelate evening/night hours. Thus EV owners have an incentive to charge at night,during less-expensive, low-peak hours.

6https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAE_J1772


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EV Connect, Inc.714 West Olympic Boulevard, Suite 939

Los Angeles, CA 90015

Phone: +1 310 961 2096Phone: +1 888 780 0062

[email protected]

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EV Connect What is EVSE White Paper